Ediebalboa

“Worse than starving is having food just for daily fuel without knowing properly what you're eating.” Dodin's friends produce a lot of morsels of wisdom while feasting, and this could easily be another. You won't find any pressurized Boiling Point in late 19th century France, and the masterfully shot first 20 minutes are proof of that. The steam evaporating, the sizzle of the fat oozing out, the pots slowly bubbling and inside them dozens of organic ingredients you could only dream of when shopping in a supermarket. To make all that whirring or rustling stand out, the film also lacks any music. On the cooking and gourmet side, it’s pure masturbation. What is surprising, however, is that even the romantic line in the background of this gastro-paradise does not lag behind the cooking. The central couple in the autumn of their lives manage to sell emotions in the kitchen as well as in the bedroom. In short, Anh Hung Tran has sent out into the world the most French film "from the good old France" in years, and one where you really should have your mind made up about where you're going to eat after the credits roll.

Tense, well acted by the aptly chosen cast, believable; Argo really deserved that Oscar. Ben Affleck had already proved in previous films that he could eventually make it as a director more than an actor, and here he has once again taken it to the next level. Throughout the film, you really believe the hopeless situation the American diplomats in Iran were in. By the end, though, I thought it was a bit overdone with the last-minute chasing of everything as they escape. After all, it couldn't realistically have been that intense, and I don't think the ending had to be so eye-popping and happy. Despite this, I would still call the film one of the highlights of the year, thanks to the brilliantly chosen premise.

A big surprise for me. The Americans finally make fun of themselves too, and it has to be said that they do it very well. Emmerich has made an utterly easygoing action film that, while it has, as always, a dire plot in the background, is otherwise taken with a lightness I've never seen from him before. Thanks to this, even Jamie Foxx, whom I normally don't like very much, is really comical as the president together with his bodyguard Tatum. It's a pity about the somewhat uneven pace and the related contrasting transitions between genres, when sometimes the fun is lost. The plot then has to be handled by bad guys with nerves to spare, led by Jason Clarke.

The series could easily have turned into an ordinary crime drama set in 1929 Berlin, but it wouldn't have featured the famous Tykwer-Klimek duo. I do not mean to question the merits of other creators, but few could have so gracefully presented the political situation of the Weimar Republic, guided the nightlife of Berlin's bohemians with spectacular musical numbers, and solved over a dozen conspiracies from monarchists to communists. And with a period soundtrack that proves that even music in the spirit of the 1920s can be "cool", it's really easy. If it weren't for the somewhat rushed finale, it would have been flawless, as the main story is wrapped up with several excellent twists and turns, but the subplots of the secondary characters are a bit too contrived for that. Otherwise, great.

With the thirties comes the best of what Babylon Berlin has brought us so far. Several scenes are truly memorable thanks to excellent editing. The creators weren't afraid to stretch the plot again, so it gets to the Nazis, gangsters, Jews, Jewish gangsters, journalists, communists, and malnourished kids from the Zoo station, and everything more or less builds to a conclusion where no threads remain unresolved. Tykwer and co. made a great job of this script during covid.

You can only call Batman v Superman mediocre once you take into account its huge potential, which was more or less buried by unnecessary mistakes. Starting with Snyder's routine direction and ending with a rudimentary script without proper emotions, characters and twists, the film is a bore that naively understands darkness as more black on the screen. But rudimentary thinking is also connected with the two main characters. Instead of the chosen guardians of order, we get two little brats fighting over a toy in the sandbox. The only consolation is that Affleck's battered Batman at least looks far more natural during the dull beatings than if Bale was running around in the same costume. DC is floundering and it's only a matter of time before it puts itself out of the game for good.

After the phenomenal Breaking Bad, Vince Gilligan could have created absolutely anything. In the end, however, he stayed in his favourite territory and invented a whole new storyline for his favourite lawyer, Saul Goodman. Again, there are strong characters, unexpected twists and turns, and a pervasive southern New Mexico atmosphere. Nobody’s rushing anywhere, the plot slowly unfolds and the author's confidence is evident in every scene or dialogue. So even though the first 10 episodes could be summed up in a few sentences, it's the details that make it stand out from the competition. Already the theme song at the beginning of each episode suggests that this is not going to be mainstream.

Despite its groundbreaking nature, Blade Runner has always been for me a film whose main point eluded me and I was rather carried away by its polished audiovisual, but Villeneuve has managed to do both. Together with visual wizard Deakins, he delivers a fascinating spectacle with a lucid narrative while answering everything left unspoken from the past, which is not surprising given the runtime. Villeneuve takes his time with almost everything and it wouldn't be a problem if the reward was catharsis like in Sicario. Here, however, Harrison Ford's scenes are the only highlights, and the rest is kind of left neglected. For a sequel, though, outstanding quality.

Brian and Roger wanted a big family affair and they got it, but if you want Freddie crawling dejectedly on the floor, go somewhere else. Bohemian Rhapsody is the epitome of pure entertainment, delivering a Queen’s Best of the Best with four individuals that would be right at home with the members of the famous band. But where this quartet personally overwhelms me is the almost complete and over-hyped Live Aid, which in atmosphere is nothing like the 1985 original. It's only there that you really realise how much you wish the concert, the film and especially Mercury's life had never come to such an untimely end.

The defining tennis match of the 20th century yes, Borg and McEnroe in the lead roles no. It ends up somewhere halfway between a Borg biopic combined with Rush, and the result grinds. The American troublemaker is woefully underused off the courts, and his few room scenes or interviews are not enough to portray character. Shia can curse all he wants, but it's no use. The whole film is relies on Sverrir Gudnason, who is the Ice Borg as he should be. The legendary match itself has its limitations in terms of tennis, but the tension could be cut. It's a shame that the finale simply isn't preceded by more balanced character exposition, which is doubly disappointing when even McEnroe himself admitted after the premiere that he would have been able to pull off better stories than the ones that appeared in the film.